Refrigerator evaporator



W. W. HIGHAM ET AL REFRIGERATOR EVAPORATOR Sept. 5, 1939.

Filed July 2, 1938 2 Sheets-Sheet l Fig. 5.

INVENTOR. s

y ATTORNEY.5

P 5, 1939- w. w. HIGHAM ET AL 2,171,790

7 REFRIGERATOR EVAPORATOR Filed July 2, 1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Fig. 9. 45" INVENTORS (Jill-1am (if/1722a? L'dward A7. Ld/ifA/iS/i Patented Sept.5, 1939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE William W. Higham, Detroit, andEdward A. Langwiah, Birmingham, Mich., assignors to Universal CoolerCorporation, Detroit, Mich a corporation of Michigan Application July 2,1938, Serial No. 217,150

'10 Claims.

This invention relates to an evaporator structure for refrigerators.

The general objects of the invention are to provide an evaporatorstructure wherein one or more tubes are used for the refrigerant withthe tubes fashioned into coils and wherein elements are employed withthe tube to form or'provide a wall structure of a solid nature. The wallstructure may be employed as walls or defining parts for formingpartially or entirely a sharp freezing chamber, or in some instances thewall may be such as to not define a sharp freezing chamber but may beleft in substantially flat form and can be disposed vertically orhorizontally or at any suitable angle. When disposed horizontally thewall structure may be employed as a shelf, and the temperature may besuch as to freeze water or other substance retained on the shelf in asuitable receptacle.

To these end-s the structure essentially comprises one or more lengthsof tubing fashioned into coils with plate members assembled with andconnected to the coils and closing the space between runs of the coils.The evaporator may be made in various sizes by selecting the desiredlength of tubing and the desired number of coils and plates.

The invention is exemplified by the illustrations in the accompanyingdrawings.

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of a tube which may be employed in carryingout the invention.

Fig. 2 is a plan view illustrating the tube fashioned into coils andshowing one manner of assembling the wall-forming plates.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged cross sectional view taken on line 3-3 of Fig. 2showing different stages of the assembling operation.

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a completed tube and plate assembly.

Fig. 5 is an end view of one form of evaporator which may be fashionedfrom the assembly shown in Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a view of a modified arrangement for connecting the plates andtube.

Fig. 7 is a view of a still further modified arrangement.

Fig. 8 is a top plan view of a different form of evaporator structure.

Fig. 9 is a side elevational view thereof.

Fig. 10 is an end view of an evaporator shown in Figs. 8 and 9.

The evaporator in its simplest form comprises essentially a tube and aplurality of similar plates. Preferably, the tube and plates are made ofmetal, and advantageously the tube may be formed of extruded metal.Aluminum or an aluminum alloy is admirably adapted for such purpose,although the tube may be fashioned from other metal such as copper,copper alloy, cuprous metals generally, or any other suitable metal. 5The plates may or may not be-formed of extruded metal, and they may bemade of any one of the above mentioned metals, particularly, an aluminumalloy.

The tube structure in Fig. 1 illustrates one 1 form of tube and the tubeis generally illustrated at l. One side of the tube is of a rathersquare formation fashioned with a groove 2 with opposite ribs' 3 and 4.A suitable length of this tube is fashioned in to cells as shown in Fig.2, the 1 particular coil shown having a series of runs 5 connected bybends of substantially 180' as shown at 6. The runs 5 are preferablyparallel.

As shown in Fig. 3 there is a plate In between each run 5, and eachplate has a rib ll of dove- 20 tail formation, there being a rib on eachedge of each plate. The coil, as shown in Fig. 2, may be placed upon asuitabfe support or work table, and then the several plates may belocated substantially as shown in Fig. 3. The coil is dis- 25 posed withthe groove 2 lowermost, and then the plates positioned substantially asshown at the left hand side of Fig. 3, and then the ribs 3 and 4 arefashioned over so as to underlie the dovetail formation of the ribs II.The two ribs .ll of 30 adjacent plates meet each other to form acomplete dovetail formation. The ribs 3 and 4 may be fashioned over inany suitable manner, as for exampe, by a tool having a roller l2 forengaging the top of the tube and rollers l3 for turn- 85 ing over theribs. A pate for projecting beyond the endmost run of the coil may ormay not be used. As shown in Fig. 2, one plate is used on one end butnone at the other end.

The illustration in Fig. 4 shows an assembled 40 evaporator unit in flatform, the Fig. 4 illustration being substantially that shown in Fig. 2but in an inverted position. The ends of the tube may be rounded off andprovided with fittings [5 for connection to other conduits or the likefor the 1'8? 45 frigerant. The evaporator may be thus used in flat formand may be disposed in a refrigerator cabinetso as to form a shelf. Theplates meet together at closely fitted seams and provide a substantial ysmooth support upon which food stuffs may be disposed. A refrigeratormay be set up to operate so that a tray of water or a tray of other foodstuff may be rested upon the shelf and frozen. This structure may alsobe fashioned to define a hollow-like structure as 55 may be fashionedfrom a tube and plate arrange shown in Fig. 5. To this end the structuremay be bent substantially on the bend lines IE to form a U-shapedevaporator illustrated in Fig. 5 wherein the walls define an inner area.generally shown at i! which may be termed a sharp freezing area or zone.

Other ways of securing the plates and runs of coil are shown in Figs. 6and '7. In Fig. 6 the tube la may be fashioned with undercut grooves onopposite sides, as shown at 20; while one side of the tube may be fiatas illustrated at 2i, the plates l0a are fashioned with opposite edgesenlarged and provided with dovetail ribs 22. In this form the undercutgrooves 20 may be originally of undercut shape, and after the tube isfashioned into coils, as shown in Fig. 2, plates Ilia may be slippedinto position by lengthwise movement between two adjacent runs. The edgeportions of the plates may be enlarged, as shown at 23, for making anice fit with the tube. To tighten down the joint pressure may beapplied by means of a roller 24 to collapse the portions of the tubedefining the undercut groove tightly against the dovetail ribs 22.

In Fig. 7 the tube lb may be fiat on one side, as shown at 25, andprovided with dovetail ribs 26, while the plates lob have enlarged edgeswith grooves 21. The grooves 2'! may or may not be initially of undercutformation. If undercut initiallly the plates lob will be assembled byshifting them lengthwise into position between runs, or if the grooves21 are initially not undercut, then the plates-may be positioned bysnapping them into position between the runs. In any event, the grooveformation may be closed or tightened against the dovetail ribsby asuitable roller 30.

The structure shown in Figs. 6 and '7 may be used in fiat form, asillustrated in Fig. 4, or suitably shaped, one shape of which is shownin Fig. 5. The solid wall or fiat surface is defined by the plates I lieand the fiat surfaces 2i and 25 of the tube.

Another form of evaporator structure is illusttrated in Figs. 8, 9 and10, and this evaporator ment shown in Fig. 3, or Fig.6 or Fig. 7.Whereas in Figs. 4 and 5 there is but a single tube,

. Figs. 8, 9 and 10 show an evaporator with parallel tube arrangementswith headers.v One portion of the evaporator, as for example, a sidewall, may be defined by a plate-like arrangement in fiat form. Forconvenience, the reference characters used in Figs. 8, 9 and 10 are thesame as those used in Figs. 1 to 5, insofar as the characters areapplied to the tube and plate structure, although, as mentioned above,the structures shown in Figs. 6 and '7 may be used. Another wall of thisevaporator may be formed by a coil of tube and plates l 0. In thearrangement shown two side walls of an evaporator are thus formed, andheaders are used for connecting the two tubes of the two walls. Oneheader is illustrated at 40 and the ends of the two tubes, both asillustrated at i, are connected into the header 40, the header 40 havinga tube ii for the inlet of refrigerant. The opposite ends, also bothindicated at I of each tube, are connected to a header 42 having anoutlet for refrigerant 43. One header may be located in a relatively lowposition as illustrated, this advantageously being the inlet, and theother header, as at 42, may be located adjacent the top of the platesfor the outlet of refrigerant. This arrangement defines a more or lessconfined area lla which may be employed as a sharp freezing chamber.

The structures shown and described constitute the basic evaporatorstructure, although it is to be appreciated that the completedevaporator may be finished and embellished as desired by suitablecoverings or plates, or for example, an instrument panel or plate at thefront or the like, and the sharp freezing chambers I1 and "a may becompletely or partially closed by the use of other sheet metal plates.The device has been described as a refrigerant evaporator, but thestructure may be used in refrigerators for condensers or the like,although the plate structure has been particularly designed and isparticularly useful in evaporators.

We claim: 7

1. An evaporator comprising a tube fashioned into a coil having aplurality of spaced substantially parallel runs connected together bybends in the tube, a plurality of plates separate from the tube tndbridging the space between adjacent runs, and formations on the runs oftube and the edges of the plates fashioned into interengagingrelationship for securing the edges of the plates to the runs of tube.

2. An evaporator comprising a tube fashioned into a coil having spacedsubstantially parallel runs connected together by bends in the tube, aplurality of plates separate from the tube, each bridging the spacebetween two adjacent runs and tongue and groove formations on the tubeand plates serving to connect the edges of the plates to the runs oftube.

3. An evaporator comprising a tube having ribs running along one sidethereof and defining therebetween a groove, said tube being fashionedinto a coil having a plurality of runs connected together by bends inthe tube, and a plurality of plates each having a rib along one edge,said plates being disposed so that a plate bridges the space betweenadjacent runs with the ribs on the adjacent edges of two plates disposedin the groove in a run, the ribs on the tube being fashioned intointerlocking relationship with the ribs on the plates.

4. An evaporator comprising a tube having ribs running along one sidethereof and defining therebetween a groove, said tube being fashionedinto a coil having a plurality of runs connected together by bends inthe tube, and a plurality of plates each having a dovetail shaped ribalong one edge, said plates being disposed so that a plate bridges thespace between adjacent runs with the ribs on the adjacent edges of twoplates disposed in the groove in a run, the ribs on the tube beingfashioned into interlocking relationship with the dovetail shaped ribson the plates.

5. An evaporator comprising a tube having agroove formationsubstantially on opposite sides, said tube being fashioned into a coilhaving a plurality of spaced runs connected by bends in the tube, saidtube being disposed so that the grooved formations on successive runsface each other, and a plurality of plates, one disposed between eachtwo adjacent runs and having dovetail shaped ribs fitting in the grooveformation on the runs, the material of the tube being fashioned so thatthe groove formation interlooks with the dovetail ribs on the plates.

6. An evaporator comprising a tube fashioned into a coil having aplurality of spaced runs connected by bends in the tube, said tubehaving a dovetail shaped rib on oppomte sides with the project towardeach other, and a plurality of plates, one disposed between each twoadjacent runs, each plate having a groove formation on its edges forreceiving the ribs on the runs and the groove formation being fashionedinto interlocking relationship with the dovetail shaped ribs.

7. An evaporator comprising a tube having flat surface on one side, saidtube being fashioned into a coil having a plurality of spaced runsconnected together by bends in the tube, a plurality of plates, onedisposed betweeneach two adjacent runs and bridging the spacetherebetweeu, interlocking tongue and groove formations on the tube andon the edges of the plates for uniting the plates and the runs, and onesurface of each of the plates being disposed substantially in the sameplane with the flat surfaces of the tube to provide asubstantiallysmooth solid wall.

8. An evaporator comprising a tube fashioned into a coil having spacedruns connected together by bends in the tube, a plurality of platesdisposed in edge to edge relationship, with each plate bridging thedistance between adjacent runs, the meeting edges of the platessubstantially underlying a run of the coil, said meeting edges of theplates and the tube having interengaging tongue and groove formationsfor securing the edges of the plates to the runs of the tube.

9. An evaporator comprising, two sections each formed of a tubefashioned into a coil having a plurality of spaced runs connected bybends in the tube, said sections being disposed in spaced relationship,a plurality of plates each substantially bridging the space betweensuccessive runs of the coil, the plates and tube having interfittingtongue and groove formations, a header having an inlet for refrigerant,one end of the coil in each section being connected to said header sothat the header connects the two sections, a second header having anoutlet for refrigerant, and the other end of the coil in each sectionbeing connected to the second named header so that the second headerconnects the two sections.

10. An evaporator comprising, two sections, each formed of a tubefashioned into a coil having a plurality of spaced runs connected bybends in the tube, said section being disposed in spaced relationship,means closing the space between successive runs of the coil and defininga substantially closed wall, the said means and tube having interflttingtongue and groove formations,

a header for connecting the two sections and having an inlet forrefrigerant, one end of the coil in each section being connected to saidheader, asecond header for connecting the two sections and having anoutlet for refrigerant and the other end of the coil in each sectionbeing connected to the second named header.

WILLIAM W. HIGHAM. EDWARD A. LANGWISH.

